The new international artist series, Introducing Nashville, is coming to Auckland's Tuning Fork for a one-off show this March 2019, featuring three of North America's most exciting artists, Brandy Clark, Devin Dawson, and Lindsay Ell.
The two-hour show is designed to introduce current artists from Nashville to music fans around the world, and present them in a rare, stripped-back environment. Mirroring a quintessential writers round, 'Introducing Nashville' will see artists take turns in introducing songs and sharing stories behind the tracks, along with their personal life and career experiences. This show is an opportunity for NZ audiences to catch a unique glimpse of the lives and art of some of their favourite Nashville country singers and musicians.
Punctuated by unrehearsed banter—with each of the artists featured occupying different lanes musically—music lovers will come away from the evening having experienced a true cross section of what is coming out of the Music City right now.
"We are excited to invest in artists who are building international careers, and help place them in front of fans in multiple cities who seldom experience Nashville artists live," said Milly Olykan (Vice President, International Relations and Development). "Launching the first 'Introducing Nashville' tour with these distinct artists, each of which occupy such different lanes musically, illustrates the broad range of sounds coming out of Nashville and the Country genre."
Hailing from Washington, Brandy Clark is first on the three-artist bill of Introducing Nashville's debut tour. She received her first of an impressive six career Grammy nominations in 2013 in the Best Country Song category, co-writing the Miranda Lambert no. 1 hit 'Mama's Broken Heart'.
Shortly thereafter, Clark independently released her debut album '12 Stories' which was embraced by music lovers and critics alike. The album garnered two Grammy nominations and earned Best Album commendations from the likes of The Boston Globe, New York Magazine, NPR, New York Post and more.
Also joining the bill is breakout artist, Devin Dawson, who released his debut album 'Dark Horse' earlier this year, landing Top 5 on Billboard's Top Country Albums chart. The record features Dawson's current single 'Asking For A Friend', which he has recently performed on US television programs 'Today' and 'Late Night with Seth Meyers'.
This year, Dawson has been recognised with multiple nominations including ACM's New Male Artist, CMT's Breakthrough Video of the Year and Radio Disney's Best New Country Artist. The Californian singer has received critical praise from outlets such as Billboard, Huffington Post, Entertainment Weekly, People, ELLE, The Tennessean, AXS, HITS and more. Apart from his solo projects, Dawson has recently toured with Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, along with labelmate Brett Eldredge. His first headlining run—the 'Stray Off Course Tour'—began in November and continues on up to 2019.
Completing the awesome line up is Canadian singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, Lindsay Ell. Lauded as one of "the most exciting and talented young artists in country music (Forbes)," Lindsay is definitely a star on the rise. She has toured alongside Luke Bryan, Buddy Guy, The Band Perry and Keith Urban and has impressed audiences as Carrie Underwood's live guitar player at the 50th Annual CMA Awards. This year alone, Ell exhilarated audiences as part of Brad Paisley's 'Weekend Warrior World Tour', Sugarland's 'Still The Same Tour' and select dates of Keith Urban's 'Graffiti U World Tour'.
Ell's first full-length album 'The Project' debuted at no. 1 on the Nielsen Soundscan Country Albums Chart, and was named Billboard's Best Country Album of 2017. Her current single 'Criminal' was the most added song at U.S. Country radio upon release, becoming her first Top 20 hit in the US.
Don your boots and cowboy hats and sing along with Nashville's A-class artists next year!
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